A Tale of Two Sisters Blog

Two Sisters talking about writing and publishing.

Runs with Chocolate: Day Minus 6

By CATHERINE

Back in 2005, after studying for several months on my own for the Series 7 test, my employer sent me away for a week-long intensive course away from home. I had been an English major, so everything I was learning was foreign to me.

In fact, when I was a junior at Michigan, I withdrew from Econ 101 the day after the last day to withdraw and get a W on my transcript versus an F. Permanently etched in my memory is sitting in the counselor’s office and signing some letter that would go into my file saying I would not enroll in Econ 101 ever again while there.

Later, I became curious about the stock market and took a job as a broker’s assistant at UBS. I devoured the information and couldn’t get my license to trade stocks fast enough.

The Series 7, aka the General Securities Registered Representative Exam (GSRE), is the license administered by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) that gives U.S. stockbrokers the ability to trade.

When one studies for the Series 7, one is bombarded with horror stories about people who failed the test, especially those who failed by one percent as well as are stories of people who took it two or three times before passing. And some never passed.

I was bound and determined to pass it on the first try. As I drove from Chattanooga to Atlanta, I decided I’d increased my chances for success not by further cramming my brain with more information — because the actual point of the course was How to Outsmart the Series 7.

No, I’d take in the knowledge and tips and tricks — that was given.

What else could I control to boost my chances of passing the test — scheduled for the Monday following the immersion?

I chose not to put junk in my body.

I chose only to eat foods I knew would serve my brain.

Funny to think I chose food as fuel for my brain – and not my body.

I am 100 percent certain that this choice led to me to feel confident and competent, so when I hit SUBMIT at the end of the test the following Monday – and as I sat for a good 10 minutes with my head in my hands, not wanting to see my score on the screen – I knew without a doubt that if I failed the test, even if only by one percent, it was not because I did not know the material.

It would have been because I hadn’t outsmarted the tricky test.

When I eventually looked up at the screen – I couldn’t sit there forever! – I discovered that I’d passed with a 78 percent.

Fast forward 13 years and that Series 7 knowledge is still with me, but my broker’s license has expired and I’ve moved on to doing what I love – writing and publishing.

But…

I am out of the habit of eating to fuel my brain. I’m in the habit of supplementing my daily food choices with ice cream.

It all comes back to hitting that SUBMIT button.

Just as I hit submit and anticipated my score on the Series 7, I am going to hit SUBMIT on this post and I will be on course to eat only foods I know will serve my brain so that I can get the most out of the Winter 2019 Two Sisters Writing and Publishing Business Immersion.

After I hit SUBMIT, I will be committing to chronicling this journey with a daily post.